HOW TO MAKE JELLY FROM A PACKET RECIPES

Steps:

• 3 1/2 c Sugar 1 c Cider vinegar 3/4 c Sweet pepper slices 1/2 c Hot pepper slices 1 Packet (1/2 bottle) Certo -liquid pectin Simmer sugar, vinegar and peppers very slowly for 10 minutes stirring to be sure all sugar is well dissolved. Turn off heat and let stand for 30 minutes. Bring to a boil and add Certo. Boil 1 minute. Cool and stir with non-metal spoon 5 minutes. Check that it comes of the spoon in a ribbon or sheet. If not, cook it a bit more. Pour into jars and seal, or pour into freezer containers and freeze (that's what I do). Note: the peppers are seeded and sliced 1/4 inch thick with a knife or on a mandoline, for a marmalade effect. I like to use red and yellow peppers for color, or all green. Mixing red and green isn't as pretty as you might think it would be, as it makes the jelly browner. I have substituted home made pectin, which seems to work fine, if it is the same consistency as the Certo. It just tends to be pinker. I make that by boiling apple skins and cores in as little water as possible, with a lid on, and then cooling it and pressing the juice out through a sieve and saving it in a bottle in the fridge till I have enough. How much is enough? About a cup of the home made pectin, as I recall. If the stuff doesn't jell right I save it in the fridge, then later add more pectin and more sugar and cook it until it sheets right. --Helen Fleischer